Salima Raoui

Many artists are seen as having the time of their life as professional artists, selfishly and shamelessly having  fun when the rest of the world is suffering

Their reality is far from this preconceived ideology and myth on the artist archetype.

The world most  of the time don't see them as what they truly are : human beings totally dedicated to the process of art which asks of them to be fully receptive and engaged , despite life materialistic   and personal demands.

When an artist is involved with making art, he/she may not eat , talk, interact with the outside world like any other ordinary days. Artists make sacrifices everyday, using all their ressources towards their art making and birthing process. 

Art takes  energy, thought process, concentration, material and personal ressources. It takes leap of faith on the canvas but also in life.

With no salary, no guarantees of a show, a sale, nor a recognition.

Art cannot be done with that in mind otherwise it wouldn't be art. It would be rational thinking and rationality will demand that we put time and energy to provide for our basic survival needs  regardless of our inspiration of the day

Over the years  I have learned  to live on a very thin thread between rationality and creativity keeping track on where the bridge is, where to draw the line.

It is not easy , it takes work, serious work, time, vision, trust, flexibility, open mind and heart, and the willingness to get out of our secured little "safe" routine. Sometimes like Matisse it will take to move out of one's own country and spend time in a different foreign exotic one to re-kindle the fire of our inspiration all the while living in an insecure mode.

I am doing this right now during my 6 months sabbatical back in the US. My art is richer, my life more colorful. It is not safe, it is not secure, it is not easy. Where I am going after that I don't know. I don't know if I will be living here in the US  or going back to Morocco , I am waiting for signs, direction, invitation from the universe. It takes patience and living in the Yin mode, total receptivity !

I don't know if I will go to another artist in residence program, or find my tribe somewhere around here  or create my own somewhere for others to join in...It is all in the open and inspiration is high!

All I know is that I have a show scheduled for this coming friday and I hope I will get to see you there !

Meanwhile I am sharing these videos I made about my own leap of faith, artist in residence tips and environnement here in Stony Point Center , NY

I have 10 more days to go before I'll leave for...the unknown again !!

Stay tuned and write a comment, here or on youtube  if you feel inspired to share!

Hope you will enjoy the videos as much as I did while making them

Thursday June 07, 2018  - 6:00 pm until 10:00 pm

The Muslim Cohort of the Community of Living Traditions would like to invite you and your friends and family to

an open freestyle calligraphy workshop on the 99 Names of God, led by Moroccan artist Salima Raoui
followed by a fast-break ceremony and Iftar meal.

Location: Allison House, 142 West Main Street, Stony Point
(less than half an hour from the Jerrahi Mosque)

Please  RSVP with numbers attending to Rabia at mpfrth@gmail.com
if you cannot come for the meal, do let us know if you can join us for dessert

People of all faiths and backgrounds are welcome! 
We are looking forward to seeing you!

Hello dear reader

In a couple of days I shall be starting my artist residency in Stony Point Center. I am as excited as a little girl who would be going to a most magical place.

This is how it feels for artists to be able to find wonderful places and people who provide for them an inspiring space to create and just be the artist they are. Fulfilling our mission which is to just be a vessel for art to descend in matter...

I am also eager to discover this amazing center as it is hosting an interfaith program and offers a retreat structure for all spiritual communities or individuals who wish to make time for their body/heart and soul

It is so aligned with my own path, my aspirations

Last year , if some of you have followed my journey, I've opened my home in Benslimane occasionally for artists in residence. It is was a small home, so I could only receive one or 2 artists at a time

It was an amazing experience for me to be able to provide a space for art and be present for it to blossom.

I loved baking, cooking, making creative meals for their body when they were making food for our souls

I have a dream , always did, and it was to have a little house in which  I would have a space for my art and for artist in residence. Rumi "Guest House", like his most famous poem, would be a place where emotions would be welcomed and transformed onto beautiful masterpieces

Maybe one day this dream will manifest itself, I thought it would be in Morocco where I lived...But life and the universe are calling me back in the US again, closer to my son, my friends and my other World. A world where my creativity , my dreams and my ideas can find the right kind of soil, compost and elements to come to life and blossom

In the meantime, I will keep you updated on my time at Stony Point hopefully with a daily post right here. So if you are curious, you may subscribe to the newsletter , and it will arrive in your mailbox directly. I have also changed my blog's subscription to make your visit free from any kind of ads. This is not a money earning blog ( never was )  it is just for you to receive informations and part of my journey updates. 

Right this moment I am writing to you from Larchmont, NY where I am staying with my beautiful beloved yaya sister and her 2 little munchkins.

I am discovering this beautiful area and its great community,  the Unitarian Church last sunday on Earth Day, the parks, the little french bakery called "La Parisienne " with YUMMY chocolate croissants , young amazing talents in Mamaroneck school music festival, and a SIGN from  Luna and Shams on a school bulletin board :) 

Luna and Shams is ECC/ABB Sacred Couple training program I gave in Marrakesh last month...

I am also just resting from my recent jet lag  and dreaming my next steps  in the moss of  my imaginary garden of the soul with very special seen and unseen co-gardeners.

As Spring is arriving almost overnight ... my inspiration for new artwork and jewelry is being nourished by my daily walks in the residential streets of Larchmont. Only in the USA can we see so many amazing open gardens. It is truly a feast for the soul!

So before I leave my blog to go live my life and give my next online therapy session, I want to share one special thought from the Unitarian Church service this past Sunday

Attention, attention, attention...Attention to joy, attention to pain, attention to what is  because It is as it is...

I love the Zen attitude of the minister...inviting us to stop resisting what is. This is where pain and suffering is, in our resistance...

Love and Light

Salima

I am happy to announce that I shall be the Artist-in Residence of an amazing organization , Stony Point Center.

"Stony Point Center is home to the Community of Living Traditions, a multifaith intentional community dedicated to the practice and study of hospitality, nonviolence and justice.

Practicing Hospitality

We begin with practicing the hospitality of our Muslim, Jewish and Christian faith traditions, as we host the Center's guest groups. In its deepest sense, hospitality means "welcoming the other, welcoming the stranger," whether that comes in the form of another human being, a group, an idea, or a critique. It is this fundamental openness to learning about, understanding, and potentially being changed by the other, that is the foundational practice which leads to collaborative, effective efforts to nurture peace, nonviolence and social justice."

I am extremely excited and hope to share more of my residence journey with you as it unfolds

In the meantime here is the link to the page presenting me  right below the present artist in residence, on their website

Quite a fascinating interfaith retreat center I highly recommend to all foundations, spiritual groups or organizations for their events, annual or summer retreats

I will be there from May 5th to August 1st 2018, so it would be wonderful to see you there!

With Love and Light

Salima

About Stony Point Center 

Welcoming Across Boundaries, Nurturing Inclusive Community, Cultivating Peace and Justice

A Multifaith Commitment to Radical Hospitality Affirmed by the Presbyterian Church (USA)

Welcoming Across Boundaries by providing overnight and day-use accommodations and meeting spaces for individuals and groups. We offer delicious, locally-sourced food; simple, comfortable guestrooms; and a caring touch that honors the distinctive needs of each guest.

Nurturing Inclusive Community by respecting the uniqueness of each person. We practice courageous conversations, study of sacred texts, faithful action, and the creative arts.

Cultivating Peace and Justice by supporting the multifaith movement for nonviolence and eco-social justice. We engage in networking, human rights accompaniment, advocacy, coalition building, and nonviolent direct action. 

Stony Point Center is located in the scenic Hudson River Valley, northwest of Manhattan in beautiful upstate New York.

THE RESIDENCY

Private residence of an artist and art- therapist in Benslimane, Morocco

Contact: chezchamama@gmail.com or 212 658 89 26 22

During the residency it is possible to receive private sessions with Salima upon request.

THE PROGRAM

Potential Program in addition to the current project: Silence, painting, collage, meditation, Reiki, Chakra balancing, ECC/ ABB (Art Being & Becoming) , gardening, walking, reading, writing, participation in the Zen garden, henna sessions, moroccan traditional beauty care and hamam, local produce , crafts or art purchases, art and design jewelry created by Salima, hiking around in nature (see video in the link below)

TESTIMONY FROM RESIDENTS

"Good morning, meditative, contemplative and creative souls. I wanted to share a little word that describes most of my experience at Chezchamama. There are moments in our "everyday life" when it is difficult to open our heart to the gentleness and kindness of words that our inner voice waits patiently to unveil. We are absorbed by the frenzy of action, reaction, often considering "non-action" as a failure, a burden, accompanied by sadness.

Chezchamama, I have taken the opportunity to take some time back, observing and letting go against this agitation and this vertiginous incessant questioning of our mental sphere.

In fact, the desire to be in residency - in retreat mode -  was motivated by something internal, indefinable. The most appropriate word would be a call that resonates deep within us, a call from our inner voice as the mind tries to understand, to appoint, to structure and define, under the shape of a specific number of expectations.

Yet when I took this decision, internally, to go into myself, another intelligence manifested itself. It came, gently awakening a potential, a deep yearning. It appears only when I left it the space to express and reveal itself.

This inner voice knows what our mind can not grasp. Getting into a retreat residency was for me a way to lend an ear to listen to that little voice. But to hear, receive and integrate, as a gift, a secret that is cultivated and protects the bottom of the heart, one needs a loving and caring framework to surrender to the inner silence - the mystery place where that little voice  lives.

I'd like to thank Salima for the confidence she inspired me while accompanying and guiding me, without knowing it, without saying it, without explaining it, into that inhabited silence.

I thank her from the bottom of my heart for her generous availability, caring and selfless listening, delicacy, kindness, gentleness, empathy, discreet presence, her protective aura, wisdom and humility. 

Thank you." RZ

My Dear Salima, 

I will never thank you enough  for a wonderful time , well beyond my expectations. 
Yes it happened in a moment of doubt, I saw a door opened and others followed. A magical moment as I have little or unknown. MT